Come Back...Be Here (Gilmore Girls Post-AYITL)

Chapter 16

"Ready to enter the lions' den?" Logan asked Rory squeezing her hand tightly as they stood together, staring at the imposing front door of the Huntzberger's Hartford mansion.

"Erm...would it be okay if I said no?" Rory said looking at Logan.

Despite all the time that had passed since she first met Logan's parents all those years ago, she still felt a great deal of apprehension about seeing them again, especially under these circumstances. She knew that they were not her biggest fans but as her mother has reminded her earlier that day, the feeling was pretty mutual and Lorelai had tried to reinforce and remind Rory that she was every bit as good as them, if not better – whatever they might try to say to the contrary.

Logan smiled encouragingly at Rory before he opened the door. There was nothing left for them to do other than walk in and do what they had come to do.

Rory and Logan handed their coats to the maid who was waiting to greet them. Further down the hallway, they could hear the voices of Mitchum, Shira and Honor in the dining room. Rory smoothed down her deep red shift dress nervously. The Huntzbergers never failed to put her on edge and she was conscious of how critically they would be looking at her today.

"Don't be nervous Ace, you look fine?" Logan said, putting his hand on her shoulder, trying to reassure her.

"And pregnant, Logan, I look pregnant" Rory had tried her hardest to find something – anything - that didn't accentuate her growing bump but it was getting harder and harder by the day. Obviously, they were going to break the news that night but Rory really didn't want it to be the first thing that they noticed when they walked into the room, so was hoping to mask it just long enough.

"You look okay, that dress is just loose enough around your middle, they won't notice, they'll be too busy wondering what you're doing here with me at all." Logan rolled his eyes.

Rory took a deep breath as Logan grabbed her hand and confidently strode into the dining room, every so slightly dragging her behind him. "Here goes nothing," he said under his breath.

"Loga..." Shira started before staring at them both opened mouthed.

Mitchum looked up from the table and was somewhat surprised to see that his son had walked into the room with none other than Rory Gilmore on his arm. Honor looked at the couple nervously and offered a sympathetic smile as Mitchum stood up to greet them.

"Logan. Rory, always a pleasure". Mitchum smiled at them both.

Logan sighed. So this was how it was going to go, he thought.

"Ha," Mitchum said while throwing his head back and laughing "So this is what all this is about. I can't believe I didn't put two and two together."

"Mitchum?" Shira looked at her husband confused. "What is going on?"

"I knew that when I saw you two together in London last year something was going on between you. It was written all over your faces but I let it go, as I thought – well, I had hoped, that when Odette moved to London you would stop all this messing around with Rory."

"We did but..." Logan said, feeling annoyed that his father was dismissing it as messing around but he had little in the way of defence for his actions.

"...but what?" Mitchum said before Shira interrupted him.

"Hold on just a moment. Am I getting this right? Are you saying, that you've been seeing Rory all this time and you've called off your wedding for HER?" she gesticulated rudely at Rory.

"Mom..." Logan said with a warning tone.

"No Logan, this is ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous" Shira said pacing "No. You need to stop this nonsense and make things right with Odette. NOW."